We spoke to Executive Producers J.J. Johnson and Matt Bishop about how Jane on Apple TV+ is inspiring kids to care for the planet. We also discussed what is important to them when it comes to creating fun and educational family programming.
The new five-episode season of the Emmy-winning series “Jane” premiered globally on Apple TV+ this past Friday, April 19th. Inspired by the work of Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, a world-renowned ethologist, conservationist, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, and UN Messenger of Peace, this mission-driven series is perfect for kids and families.
Interview: Jane Executive Producers J.J. Johnson and Matt Bishop
J.J. Johnson (Emmy Award winner for Dino Dana, Endlings, and Ghostwriter), alongside Sinking Ship Entertainment and the Jane Goodall Institute, brings you “Jane” – a fun and educational show designed to excite young viewers about the environment. This interview gets inside the minds of Executive Producers J.J. Johnson and Matt Bishop.
Inspiration Behind the Apple TV+ Series Jane
J.J. credits some of the inspiration behind Janethe birth of his child and his wish to create a program that sparks hope about the planet’s future in young viewers. When asked what it was that motivated him to create this type of programming J.J. stated “Well, Jane specifically came from… just after the birth of my first child, my daughter. I remember staring into this young, innocent, sweet face and immediately having this sense of, like, panic about what world she was inheriting. And so that began the wheels of trying to figure out how do we come up with an environmental series that’s going to balance hopefulness with still the action-adventure and everything else you would hope to see in a show?”
J.J. and Matt acknowledge the difficulty in creating a show that is both educational and fun but underline the importance of leaving viewers with a lasting takeaway. J.J. states “Educational, sometimes gets a bad rap. For me, it’s just having a takeaway. We talk about it as something in the show that you’d want to tell your best friend about. So, some bit of information that you’d want to share or makes you feel like you have a better sense of the world around you.”
Collaboration is Key
Matt details the collaboration between the writers and the VFX team, ensuring visually captivating episodes that stay rooted in real science. “I really think that Jane was kind of a culmination of our last 20 years, that Sinking Ship building up together. So, JJ and I have been working together for 20 years. It’s hard to believe we started when we were eight, but we did. And so, with each of the shows we try to build and kind of do something that scares us a little bit.” 
Greybeard the chimpanzee, Mason Blomberg, and Ava Louise Murchison in “Jane,” on Apple TV+.
He goes on to explain both the challenges and rewards of taking on such a massive task.”I think what was so exciting about a series like Jane, is that every episode there’s a different creature, there’s a different set of, you know, biology and anatomy. We had to discover and try to rebuild and recreate, yet still trying to find a way to make sure that we can have it work for the show, like for the actual structure of the episode, because, you know, getting a panda bear to go on top of a play structure can be a little bit tricky.”
Fun at the forefront
Matt also tells us about the thrill it is to create these moments. “But, you know, having those, like, fun, amazing moments with JJ and the writing team where they’re coming up with ideas and we’re kind of just thrilled to push it further. You know, from the ant colony attack in the pink fort, to the fairy armadillo. There are so many new things that we’ve never done before. We had a shot with almost 500,000 ants, and it was like, that’s the thing, that we’re just thrilled that we get a chance to do. Partners at Apple were really amazing at pushing the creative as well. So for us, we’re really thrilled that we can have a show that’s both incredibly exciting, also incredibly educating. But it kind of happens in tandem. So, you know, on our end, creating all these, all these amazing stories was just a… it was an absolute thrill.”
The new five-episode season of the Emmy-winning series “Jane” premiered globally on Apple TV+ this past Friday, April 19th.
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